Digg Is Building a Google Reader Replacement

Digg, the user-submitted social website that was relaunched last year, wants to create a Google Reader replacement with a full on API. The company announced on Thursday its intention to develop and release a replacement during the second half of 2013. Not exactly in time before Reader’s impending burial date, but worthy, from-scratch services weren’t built in a day.

“We’ve been planning to build a reader in the second half of 2013, one that, like Digg, makes the Internet a more approachable and digestible place,” Digg said. “After Google’s announcement, we’re moving the project to the top of our priority list. We’re going to build a reader, starting today.”

Digg says it will approach the project the same way it went about rebuilding its current site, with emphasis on “tools that surface the most interesting things on the Internet.” There are already some alternatives out there, but not many have the (admittedly tumultuous) history of Digg. The website says it will rebuild on Reader’s best features, while also advancing them to fit today’s Internet—that means plenty of social sharing.

“Don’t get us wrong: we don’t expect this to be a trivial undertaking,” Digg said. “But we’re confident we can cook up a worthy successor.”

Digg goes on to request user suggestions of what features the website’s Reader replacement should have. A countdown page to Reader’s death currently ticks away where interested parties can submit their email address. Only 108 days until Google Reader is gone for good. But a new, like-for-like (and hopefully even better) replacement is on the way.